Heroes and Villains
by Aria6
Summary: Ichigo is a super hero named the Mask, and Grimmjow is his arch nemesis, El Pantera. What happens when Grimmjow decides to retire, and meets a certain berry at university? But while he might be retired, Ichigo isn't, and things will start to get interesting... AU, lemons, read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Grimmjow sat on the edge of the roof, checking his e-mail. Below him, there was a small crowd of people pointing and taking pictures, but he ignored them with the ease of long practice. They were mostly tourists, unaccustomed to seeing super heroes and super villains going about their business.

He lived in the city-state of Duranada. The city was huge, massive, and sometimes seemed like the centre of gravity for the whole world. Beautiful and vicious, it was a natural haven for people with abilities that were more or less than human. El Pantera was one of those.

That was his super villain name. Grimmjow was definitely on the dark side of things, although he was kind of a piker where real villainy was concerned. He didn't do assassinations, he didn't have a crime ring, he wasn't trying to take over the world… the things he didn't do went on and on. What he did do was thievery, general thuggery and finding missing persons. He was really good at that last, and it was the only thing he did that was quasi-legitimate.

His super powers were the boring, Spider-man variety. An excellent healing factor, enhanced speed and endurance, and the ability to track people via their aura signatures. That last power could have made him a pretty good assassin, but El Pantera still had a few morals. Shooting suburban housewives because the old man was having an affair and wanted to marry the secretary had less than no appeal. So he was just a moderately unknown criminal, except among the police and the people who wanted to find people.

His only real claim to fame was one of his enemies. It was sort of hilarious. The Mask was a superhero with a really fucked up mask that was apparently part of his powers. He was as famous as Grimmjow wasn't, with all the enemies he'd put in their places. Theoretically, the Mask should have made quick work of a garden variety thug like him. But he never had, and El Pantera knew why. Seeing the Mask somehow brought out his hidden abilities, the things he knew about and tried to suppress. But when he fought that bastard, everything just came oozing out and before you knew it, he was close to breaking that mask. So their names had become linked together, and El Pantera's one claim to fame was all the pictures people had of him fighting the Mask.

Grimmjow tilted his head as he read one particular e-mail. It was from a guy he knew only vaguely, and was babbling on about his good time on a Caribbean cruise. Not really worth reading, but he had nothing better to do at the moment. He was reading it off a VR screen inside his helmet. His super villain outfit consisted of a black and blue cat suit and his helmet. The helmet was an absolute masterpiece, his equivalent of Spider-man's web serum and web dispensers. The helmet had wi-fi, internet screens, e-mail access, thermo vision, you name it. It also hid his face perfectly and sharpened his aura sensing abilities. It looked a lot like a motorcycle helmet, bright blue except for the black visor, and the top was shaped into cat ears.

"When is he gonna get here?" Grimmjow muttered to himself as he finally deleted the e-mail and started to do a full cleanout of the folder. He was waiting for the Mask. No doubt word had already gone out that El Pantera was hanging out on the roof of a building, plotting some nefarious mischief. The Mask would have to show up soon to find out what he was up to. The damned bastard wouldn't be able to stay away.

It took another fifteen minutes, but he was right. There was the soft sound of someone landing behind him and Grimmjow glanced over his shoulder. The Mask could fly, which he couldn't do, unless he was calling on his hidden powers. Only the Mask could make him fly.

"You took your fucking time. I was about ready to start calling my buddies so we could bullshit about the weather." Flipping his legs up, El Pantera turned around so he could look at the Mask.

That mask really was scary, mostly because it looked so real. It was like a skull, white bone, but decorated with red markings. The eyes inside it were the weirdest things Grimmjow had ever seen, black and gold. The rest of his outfit was loose flowing robes. They probably had some kind of fancy name, but Grimmjow preferred to just call them robes. They were black, of course, although his belt was red and so was the strap he used to hold his sword in place. El Pantera used a sword, too, but he kept his on his belt like a normal person. But then, his sword was tiny compared to the Mask's.

"What are you doing here, Pantera?" The Mask's voice always had a gritty, echoing quality behind his mask. Grimmjow grinned, secure in the knowledge that the Mask couldn't see the expression.

"Waiting for you, strawberry." He said just to see his enemy twitch. He loved making fun of that orange hair, and strawberry was a bit more creative than carrot top. "How's my favorite super hero been?"

"Stuff it, you asshole. Are you looking for a fight again? Because I told you last time to stop that." Grimmjow's grin widened to shark like proportions. The Mask had actually said something obscene the last time he'd picked a fight for no reason. It hadn't stopped him, though. No, something else was stopping him, something more permanent.

"Nah. I'm not up for a fight. I just wanted to let you know that you ain't gonna be seein' me around these parts no more." He said in a very fake Western accent. Even with the mask in the way, his old enemy managed to look puzzled. "I'm retiring. Going straight, getting a job, going to school, all that shit. Good luck, have fun, not sure how you'll get on without me and all that."

"…Are you serious?" The Mask said in a wondering tone and El Pantera nodded. "Why did you want to tell me this?" He asked and Grimmjow shrugged.

"I just thought you might like to know. We've known each other longer'n most of my friends. And besides, it's always good to know that someone ain't dead, right? Remember that guy with the spiky red hair? What the hell was his name…" Grimmjow snapped his fingers, trying to recall. He was a super hero like the Mask, they'd been inseparable for a while.

"The Red Tornado." He supplied and Grimmjow nodded.

"Yeah, that guy! Whatever happened to that guy? He just stopped showing up one day." Grimmjow honestly had no clue what had become of him. He didn't really care much, though. The Red Tornado had just been an annoyance, getting in his way when he went after the Mask.

"He got married and had a kid, actually." The Mask supplied, which made him blink.

"Huh. Perfect example then. I thought maybe he'd died or something. So I thought maybe you'd like to know that I'm not dead in a ditch somewhere." He hesitated a moment before admitting to the embarrassing part. "And I just wanted to say goodbye." He gazed at the Mask, wondering if he'd understand. Probably not. "I loved fighting you and I'm gonna miss it." Sometimes, he thought the only time he really felt alive was when he was fighting the strawberry.

"You are weird as hell." The Mask finally said before offering him a hand. Grimmjow took it, squeezing gently as they shook. "Good luck, Pantera. I hope it works out for you."

"Thanks. I'll be reading the news about you, try not to get killed. I might have to go avenge you." He said, clapping his old enemy on the shoulder. "Later man." Then he leapt away, jumping to the next roof over easily. He couldn't fly, except when he was fighting against the Mask, but he sure could jump.

It was time to go home and put the monkey suit away. He wouldn't be needing it anymore.

* * *

Grimmjow turned up the collar of his jacket, waiting for the bus.

It had been three months since he'd said goodbye to his old life, and to tell the truth, he wasn't missing it a bit. Sure, the daily commute to campus kinda sucked, but his classes were going really well.

He was enrolled in the engineering program. He'd always had a knack for machines and math, and his high school marks had been just good enough to get into the program. Things had been rough, his final year of high school, or they would have been better. It didn't matter now though. All that mattered was the grades he could get in uni.

The only reason he hadn't gone straight earlier was money. To be precise, lack of it. Grimmjow had shitty credit, thanks to his old man stealing his identity when he was still in the cradle. He was still trying to clear that up, but he couldn't get a student loan. So he'd turned to dirty deeds to put away the money he'd needed. It had finally paid off. He had almost fifty thousand in the bank, and that would be enough to see him through school if he was frugal and kept his weekend job as a bartender.

To his surprise, when he got to his math class, the TA beckoned him over right away. Lifting an eyebrow, he went to see what she wanted. There was another guy with her, and Grimmjow stiffened as he saw the orange hair. That was an incredibly familiar shade. The eyes, though, were warm brown and he was wearing a friendly smile on a handsome but rather forgettable face.

"Grimm? This is Ichigo Kurosaki. He's been away for a week due to a family emergency, and could use a bit of help catching up. I think you have empty spots in your schedule at the same time. Would you be willing to tutor him?" Then she turned to Ichigo. "This is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, he's one of our best students." Grimmjow couldn't help but blush a little at that. No one in high school had ever said that to him. But then, he was way more focused now than he'd been in high school.

"Sure, I'd be glad to." It wasn't like he did much on his empty spots except go outside and feed the birds, or hit up the food court for something tasty. Although he didn't do that often. He hadn't gotten and kept his current physique by eating processed crap. "I'm free from two to four. Is that the spot you've got open?" The other guy nodded.

"Yes." He said, and his voice was soft and sweet, nothing like the tones the Mask used. Grimmjow shrugged off his momentary idea that they might be the same person. A lot of people had orange hair. "Would you like to sit together?" Ichigo asked and Grimmjow nodded.

"Sure." They both found seats and Grimmjow grimaced, as usual, at the crappy desks. They just hadn't been designed with a guy as tall as him in mind. His legs were always a little jammed up, but he endured it, paying close attention to the lessons. They were doing calculating the areas of irregular objects, which was really a lot of fun.

"Damn." Kurosaki said quietly and Grimmjow glanced at him. "I've missed so much in just a week."

"Eh, it's not that bad. We should be able to fix you up in no time." He said back, quietly, and Ichigo flashed him a small smile. "You in engineering too?" He honestly didn't think so. Grimmjow would have noticed that hair, if they'd been sharing more classes. Sure enough, Ichigo shook his head.

"No, science." He said and Grimmjow nodded. That made sense. Math was definitely an overlapping class. Then they both paid attention to the lecture. As it was ending and everyone was packing up, Kurosaki spoke again. "Where did you want to meet?"

"The café place down in the food court." Grimmjow said instantly. They served some wicked coffee, and no one would mind if they monopolized a table for a couple hours. It wasn't busy from two to four, and then he'd be able to make his last class easily. Ichigo nodded with a smile.

"See you then." They split up then, each going to their separate classes. For Grimmjow, that was another heavy math course. His whole course of study was going to be heavy as hell on math, which was how he liked it. He sucked at literature.

Soon enough, he went down to the café to meet Ichigo. The redhead was sitting in a corner, sipping on a hot cup of joe. Grimmjow decided that looked like a fine idea and bellied up to the counter, getting a skinny mocha latte with sea salt topping. Then he joined him in the corner.

"Hey. So what have you been having problems with?" He asked, feeling a little enchanted as Kurosaki smiled at him.

"This part here…" Grimmjow scooted closer so he could see what the other guy was pointing at.

"Ah, right, that's a bitch. Okay, it's like this…" Grimmjow did his best to tutor Ichigo. He knew his stuff, and unlike some people, he was pretty good at getting it out of his head. Some of the really good mathematics students were like black holes. Their brains were where knowledge went to die. If you tried to get them to explain something, you figured that out pretty fast. "Let's try one of the problems, hey?" Then they got down to dissecting a class problem, and by the time three thirty rolled around Ichigo was smiling.

"Thank you. This has really helped. Do you think we could meet again tomorrow?" He asked and Grimmjow flipped open his cell, quickly checking his schedule.

"Yeah, sure. My first class starts at ten, and I don't have a free spot until three. I could come in early though." That was actually a bit of effort for him, Grimmjow was not naturally an early riser. But he found he was willing to do it for Ichigo. "What time do your classes start?"

"Eleven. That would be perfect, if you could." Kurosaki's smile warmed the blue haired man down to his toes. "I'll buy you coffee." He said teasingly and Grimmjow laughed.

"Anything for free coffee! Okay, meet you at eight?" He said and Ichigo nodded. Grimmjow clasped hands with him for a moment, and felt a strange tingle in his palm. It almost seemed like… but he needed to get to class. "Later man."

"Later." Ichigo said with a smile, but the smile vanished as Grimmjow walked away. The blue haired man didn't see the very thoughtful look the other man was giving to his retreating back. But he wouldn't have known what to make of it if he had.

And things went on.

* * *

A month later.

Grimmjow whistled as he worked on a major project. It was serious as hell, and constituted thirty percent of his grades for that particular class. It wasn't due for weeks though, and he was starting to feel a bit stale. Pushing away from his computer, he decided he needed a breather. But what did he want to do?

"Play Star Wars?" He mused. He was Sith, of course. "Nah. Play Civ 5? Nah." He liked that game, but he'd beaten it on almost every level and the multiplayer reeked. "Play Babes with Bazookas? Hehe, no." That had been a gift from his brother over his Steam account. The stupid bastard was still trying to turn him straight. "Um…" He ran through his whole list of games and felt uninspired. He could buy something new, but maybe what he wanted wasn't a game at all. "…Huh." A smile crossed his lips as he thought of something.

Grimmjow and Kurosaki had exchanged phone numbers a week ago. It seemed like the kid was constantly missing classes. The teachers didn't give a damn, as long as he kept up his grades, and apparently he was smart enough to do it… in most classes. Their shared math class was an exception and the orange haired man really needed help. Grimmjow had turned into his go to guy, and he honestly didn't mind, despite the imposition on his time. He had a feeling that wouldn't go away, and was getting stronger every day. Was it coincidence that every time the Mask was out fighting crime, Kurosaki was missing his classes? Yeah, he didn't think so.

And that tingling feeling when he was around Ichigo was getting stronger. He didn't think the other guy felt a thing, which wasn't surprising since Grimmjow had never noticed his power affecting the Mask at all. It seemed to be a one way thing, and if Kurosaki was the Mask, he was getting a whiff of his power even when he wasn't using it. If he wasn't, well…

The other reason he was willing to tutor Ichigo was pretty simple. Sexual attraction. Grimmjow was honest enough to admit that the other guy was hot. He had muscles in all the right places, a nice smile and a great laugh. He played Sith too, which was sort of funny, and Grimmjow had switched servers to play with him a bit. They made a pretty nice team, his Warrior fucking things up as Ichigo's Inquisitor stood in the back, healing and throwing lightning around. So far, though, they'd only hung out online. Grimmjow was thinking they should take it a step further.

Flicking open his cell, he quickly placed a call. Tapping his fingers against the arm of his chair, he tried hard to suppress any nervousness. He'd invited people on dates all the fucking time, and he'd heard no or maybe later enough to get used to it. Why should this be any different? Of course, this time he cared a lot, but still.

_Hello?_ From the background sounds, Ichigo was on the bus home. That was fine, he lived not far from Grimmjow, as it happened. They'd already done a bit of studying at his house.

"Hey Ichigo, it's me, Grimm. I was wondering if you'd be interested in heading out tonight." He said easily and there was a brief pause on the other end.

_It depends. What did you have in mind? I'm not into strip clubs._ Kurosaki said suspiciously and Grimmjow grinned.

"Hoi! First off, I don't swing that way, and even if I did ya think I'm drowning in money? Nah, I just meant we could go to the bar or somethin'. Maybe get a bite to eat, that sort of thing." He said easily, mentally holding his breath. This was the first time he'd brought up his sexual orientation to Kurosaki. If the guy was going to freak, or even just politely let him down, it would be now.

_Either of those sound nice. Just nowhere expensive, I'm dead broke._ Kurosaki said and Grimmjow grinned, feeling elated. He'd just made it to first base.

"How about the Toad and Hole? It's right down the road from your place." It would be a bit of a walk for him, but he could hack it. And he wasn't afraid to walk home in the dark. This was a scary neighborhood, but he was a hell of a lot scarier than most of the people living in it.

_Sounds great. I'll meet you there._ Grimmjow said his goodbye's and went to find his nice leather jacket. It was black with blue stripes, and actually resembled his old cat suit a little. He hoped Ichigo didn't notice that. But at least it didn't have anything stupid like a snarling panther head on it or something.

He was pretty sure Ichigo was actually the Mask, but didn't want to bring it up. He wasn't sure how Kurosaki would react to finding out he was dating his former worst enemy.

* * *

Weeks later.

"She's so cute." Ichigo smiled as he watched the young child climbing up a jungle gym. "I'm almost jealous of you." The little girl had black hair like her mother, and cinnamon eyes from her father. She was athletic, social and having a lot of fun playing with the other kids.

"Yeah, almost! Bet you didn't envy me the midnight feedings." Renji leaned back against the bench, watching his daughter proudly. "Or all the times we have to discipline her. She has mastered the art of the woebegone look, absolutely mastered it." He sighed and Ichigo laughed. "Let me tell you what she did last week…" Ichigo smiled as he listened to the story of the little girl's misdeeds. Apparently, she'd spilt flour on the cat as she tried to imitate her mother's baking, and then spread it all over the house trying to catch the cat. "So what's been going on in your life?" Renji asked and Ichigo hesitated. He honestly wasn't sure how much to say. But then, he and Renji went way, way back. They'd been friends since junior high.

That was also when they'd both discovered they had super powers. Renji's ran in the family, so he wasn't exactly shocked, but Ichigo's had come out of nowhere. They'd never had an explanation for it. All they knew was that at fifteen, they were strong and young and immortal and they could do some good in the world.

And they had, although some of it had been a bit dubious. Ichigo remembered his first fight with El Pantera. The damage they'd caused to that city block had probably been more than the stolen jewelry was worth, and he'd gotten away in the end anyway. He'd learned something from that, though, and had tried to keep the damage to a minimum ever since. Nothing lasted forever, though, and when Renji accidentally impregnated his high school sweetheart – another super hero, in fact – they'd both dropped their crime fighting to focus on the new addition to their lives. They'd kept in touch, though, and Ichigo felt safe confiding in Renji.

"I think I might be in love." He said shyly and smiled as Renji sat bolt upright, his eyes bugging out a little. "It's a bit soon to know for sure, but I'm dating a really interesting guy." Renji knew he was bi, so there would be no awkwardness about that.

"Really! You hardly ever date at all." Renji said, and Ichigo blushed. That was unfortunately true. "Who is this guy? What does he look like?"

"His name is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez." Ichigo said, smiling just thinking about it. "He's about your size and he has blue hair…" He gave Renji a quick description of the man and his general habits. "He's helped me so much with my math class. I don't know if I would be passing it without him."

"You need to cut back on the super hero work." Renji observed and Ichigo grimaced. "You're not Superman, you know."

"Superman was just a story." He huffed. "I'm real, and I'm very powerful." There were powerful forces at work in the world, things much darker than El Pantera. Really, the man had never been worth his time, in terms of the damage he was doing. But Ichigo just hadn't been able to stay away.

He'd briefly had a few suspicions about Grimmjow, but then dismissed them as ridiculous. He sounded a bit like El Pantera, sometimes, but Pantera had been an asshole. He'd once randomly started destroying street lights just to make Ichigo show up to fight him! And then they'd beaten each other so bad, Ichigo had needed to take a day off school to recover from the bruises and strains. El Pantera was a lunatic.

Grimmjow, on the other hand, was nice. He was helpful, kind and very funny. He had a repertoire of the cheesiest fake accents and was willing to use them all. He had a temper and had his asshole moments, but really, who didn't? And Ichigo had never seen him raise a hand to anyone, not even the drunk at the bar who'd threatened to punch his lights out. Nothing like the constantly hostile El Pantera.

"That might be true, but you have a life Ichigo." Renji said and Ichigo brought his attention back to his friend. "University is only going to get harder, you know."

"I know." Ichigo sighed. He was on his second year. After this it would definitely get harder, and he wasn't sure what to do about it. "I'll just have to make do. At least Grimmjow can help me with it." He was really incredibly grateful for that. "We're going to the ballet this weekend." Ichigo couldn't help the pleasure in his voice. He loved the ballet. Renji choked.

"This guy is going to the ballet for you? Damn, it must be love!" Ichigo scowled and punched his friend in the shoulder. Renji winced in pain. "Hey, watch it! You're way too strong for that."

"Hmph." Ichigo glowered for a moment, then smiled. He just couldn't stay mad at his oldest friend. "I admit, the ballet probably isn't his thing. But he might like it." And how would Grimmjow know unless he tried? "Besides, I'm covering the tickets."

"Thank god. If you were making him buy his own ticket I'd say he should dump you." Ichigo scowled and faked a punch at his friend. "Woah, watch it! Hey, when can I meet this guy?"

"At this rate? Never." Ichigo retorted and Renji looked hurt. "When's the next time you're having a guy's night out?" Rukia and Renji had a rule that once a month, they each got to have special time with their friends. It let them hang out with their single friends and have a bit of adult fun.

"I was planning to go down to the Cocobana next week." Ichigo winced a little. That was Renji's favorite club, but the cover charge was a little steep and he didn't like the music. "I could change it though, I haven't invited anyone yet. What did you have in mind?"

"How about the Toad and Hole? It's where we hang out." Ichigo was absolutely certain Grimmjow would be willing to come to the Toad. He loved the British pub food and the general, low class ambience. Ichigo liked it too, especially the cheap beer on tap. It was kind of far from Renji, but his friend did have a car, which the two of them lacked.

"That's right by your place, isn't it? Sure, I'll be there. I can't wait to meet this guy." Ichigo smiled and went back to watching Renji's daughter. He thought he might like to have children someday, although if he was going to get serious about a guy it would have to be via surrogacy or adoption. And would Grimmjow be interested in children? He'd have to ask… later. Much later.

A month into dating was much too soon for heavy discussions.


	2. Courtship and Friends

Grimmjow took off his coat, setting it on the back of his chair as he took his seat at the table.

He really enjoyed the Toad and Hole. It was a British style pub, with wooden tables and chairs, dim lighting, lots of cigarette smoke and signs on the walls. The signs included old license plates, ancient propaganda and modern variations. He particularly liked the sign that said "Stay calm and Eat a Cupcake."

Cupcakes, though, were not on the menu. No, this was English pub grub and Grimmjow considered the menu for a moment. He didn't have a lot of money to spare, but he was hungry and the food here wasn't exactly expensive. He finally ordered some steak and kidney pie. The pies around here were pretty good, if you liked kidneys. And Grimmjow was actually pretty fond of kidneys. He also ordered a pitcher of a moderately priced brew. He was more than willing to treat Ichigo to a few drinks.

The next person to arrive was Ichigo, and Grimmjow smiled broadly as the kid pulled up a chair and immediately poured himself some beer.

"Rough day?" He asked sympathetically. He knew it had been rough. He watched the news, and the Mask had gotten into a fight with Dr. Mayhem. The 'good' doctor was trying to take over the city with a clone army. It hadn't gone too well for him when the Mask and a half-dozen other super heroes had gotten involved. Apparently, he'd been trying to actually clone their super powers, but the copies had been inferior to the originals. Dr. Mayhem had gotten away, though. Ichigo sighed.

"Work was a bit difficult." Ichigo admitted, reaching over to rub his side. Grimmjow wasn't surprised, he'd seen the part of the fight where the Mask's clone had kicked him there, hard. "How has your day been?"

"Not too bad. Attended classes and worked on my project, mostly." He said and Ichigo nodded, looking a touch depressed. Grimmjow gently patted him on the shoulder. "Work'll get better, just hang in there."

"Yeah… oh, there he is!" Ichigo perked up a little as a new guy entered the bar. Grimmjow almost choked at the spiky red hair. Could this be…? "Renji, over here!"

"Hi guys." He said as he took a seat with a smile. Grimmjow looked him over thoughtfully. Had the Red Tornado had cinnamon brown eyes? He rather thought he had. The rest certainly fit, although Renji seemed to have a slightly better sense of style these days, if he was the Red Tornado. The jeans and matching jean jacket he was wearing looked really good on him. "So you must be Grimmjow. It's good to meet you."

"Likewise." They shook hands and Grimmjow took note of the wedding ring. "You're married?" He asked and Renji nodded. "Any kids?"

"A little girl." Renji said proudly. "Do you have any children?" He asked and Grimmjow laughed before shaking his head. He was amused to see that Ichigo looked faintly relieved.

"Nah, I'm gay as gay can be. If I have a kid, it ain't gonna be the natural way." He said good-naturedly. "Try some of the beer, it's the good kind." Renji poured himself a mug and Grimmjow looked up as his pie came. It smelled excellent and the crust was nice and flakey as he dug in.

"Damn, now I'm hungry." Renji said as he looked over the menu. "Hey Ichi, want to share a plate of nachos, wings and deep fried pickles?" They quickly decided on the appetizer plate, which Grimmjow intended to steal a few pickles from. He loved those things.

The rest of the evening was fun, just chat about various things over brew and food. There was definitely a bit of subtle grilling from Renji, but Grimmjow didn't mind. It was kind of nice to see that Ichigo's friends cared about him, and he didn't have anything to hide. Well, except most of his past. He didn't have to lie much, though. He had stories about his mother and siblings, even a few about his deadbeat dad. He just didn't mention all the things they'd done, or the legacy of power he'd been born into. Grimmjow had left it all behind him anyway.

Over the course of the evening he learned quite a bit about Renji and Ichigo, too. Ichigo apparently had a very loving family, with an annoying dad and two sisters. Renji had both parents and one sister. They were both rather impressed to find out that Grimmjow had six siblings.

"Wow. Did you have to change a lot of diapers?" Renji asked after he mentioned that little tid-bit. Grimmjow grinned.

"More than you could imagine. I'm the oldest, so I'm an old hand with rug rats. Me and my bro were the only boys, the rest were girls." Which had been a disappointment to his mother, but not a surprise. His father couldn't have cared less. "So what do you do for a living?" He asked, bringing the conversation back to them.

"Oh, I'm a plumber." Renji said and Grimmjow had to hold back a snicker, imagining him with a plumber's crack. Yeah, probably not. "Do you have any kind of job or are you just going to school?"

"I do bartending on weekends." He said easily, finishing another beer. That was his third, but he wasn't driving. Renji was, and he was still nursing his first. "Hey, I never asked. What's your job, Ichigo?" He was entertained to see what kind of lie his boyfriend would come up with.

"Oh, just some acting." Ichigo said with a smile, and Grimmjow smirked to himself. Acting? It was, in a way. "It doesn't pay much." He said sadly and Grimmjow nodded. Super heroes didn't get paid at all, in fact. Being a super villain was far more lucrative, if you did it right anyway.

"So you actually went to the ballet with him?" Renji asked with a grin as Ichigo winced. "Did you like it?"

"Sure." Grimmjow half-lied. He hadn't minded but it definitely hadn't been his thing. "Ichi's going to a Cirque de Soleil performance with me in a couple months." That was definitely more his thing. He loved seeing the acrobatics, and he'd actually considered trying to join them. But his super powers might have become obvious. "I got the tickets." They were probably even more expensive than the ballet, since Grimmjow had gotten the good seats. But he really liked Cirque, they were pretty much his one extravagance.

"The ballet and Cirque de Soleil? You guys do like high brow entertainment, don't you?" Renji said, shaking his head, and Ichigo blushed as Grimmjow laughed.

"Yeah, I guess! Pretty messed up when you think about it." Then he glanced at the clock behind the bar. The place was still packed, but it was definitely getting late. "I really need to get home soon. I've got an early class tomorrow." He hated having to get to the Uni for eight in the morning. With public transit, he had to be out of bed at six. Unfortunately, he hadn't been able to get out of morning classes entirely. Ichigo and Renji both nodded.

"I should get going too, Rukia's expecting me home." Renji said and they all made their goodbye's. Grimmjow hesitated, then decided to walk Ichigo home.

"You don't have to come with me, you know." Ichigo said quietly. "I can take care of myself." Grimmjow chuckled softly, hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, I know." Oh, did he ever. "I'm hoping for a goodnight kiss." He said and had the pleasure of seeing his date go pink. "Will I get one?" He asked and Ichigo flashed him a quick smile.

"I think so." He said softly and Grimmjow grinned. That was what he wanted to hear. Ichigo lived on the third floor and they took the stairs. When they reached his apartment, Grimmjow decided to take the initiative. He gripped Ichigo's shoulder turning him around and taking his promised kiss.

Ichigo didn't resist at all, just melting against him. Warm, sweet lips clung insistently to his and a wet tongue prodded at him, demanding entrance. Grimmjow was more than happy to allow that, letting the orange haired man control the kiss. They finally broke it off, both of them breathing heavily, and he looked into lust filled brown eyes.

"Would you like to stay the night?" Ichigo asked and Grimmjow didn't hesitate. His morning class could go fuck itself.

"Yeah." He said, his voice husky with desire. Ichigo swallowed and turned back, fishing out his keys and opening the door to his apartment. Grimmjow spared it a bit of attention as Ichigo flipped on the lights.

Ichigo's place was a lot nicer than his. It was a bit more spacious, but what really made it was the kitchen. His little kitchen was a nightmare to work with, although he got by anyway since eating at home was hella cheaper than eating out. Ichigo's kitchen was still galley style, but with enough room to effectively open the fridge and the washing machine. Other than that, he had a decent living room with a comfortable looking couch and a plasma TV. That was also a lot better than Grimmjow's crappy old TV and the couch he'd picked up at a thrift shop.

Grimmjow didn't spend a lot of time examining the place, though. He was far more interested in looking at what was in front of him. Ichigo set out straight for the bedroom and Grimmjow paused for a moment, wondering if he should use his power to cover his tattoos. He finally decided against it. Ichigo might sense it, and even if he didn't, well, he didn't bother to cover them at the beach. It would be easier if his soon to be lover knew about them immediately.

"You do have some lube, right?" He asked quietly and Ichigo nodded, stepping close for another kiss. It was just as good as the first time, but this time Grimmjow took control, exploring Ichigo's mouth and making the other man groan.

"Have you got a condom?" He asked after they parted and Grimmjow nodded, fishing it out of his back pocket. "Good." Ichigo murmured before stepping back and working on his clothes. Grimmjow tossed the little wrapper onto the bed before disrobing. When he was done, Ichigo was looking at him wide-eyed, and he wasn't the least bit surprised. There was a reason why he always wore long shirts.

"You never mentioned you had tattoos." Ichigo murmured, stepping close and running a hand up his arm. Grimmjow glanced down at his body, reminded of how impressive the collection was. It wasn't a full body suit, but it was close.

Stylized snakes coiled loosely around his arms, the heads resting on his shoulders. Nothing but black ink, the bodies of the snakes were formed from tribal style lines. On his back, there were wings on both shoulder blades, also done tribal style. There was a huge tattoo directly over his heart, a flowing design that had deep significance for focusing his power. Another intricate design focused on his navel, surrounding his belly button. Of course, the real shocker was…

"You have tattoos on your cock?" Ichigo sounded really shocked now, reaching out to touch him. Grimmjow gasped softly as that hand encircled him, stroking the black marks on his flesh. "Didn't that hurt?"

"Nah, my mom gave me some good painkillers." He said easily. His mother had actually deadened the pain with her power. Ichigo gave him a wide-eyed look and he decided to explain. "They're actually a religious thing. Everyone in my family has them, and they ain't optional. I started getting mine when I was five." That had just been the tiny tats, the baby ones that had eventually morphed into the full design. "I don't follow that religion anymore, don't worry." He said as Ichigo looked uneasy. That made his friend smile, relieved.

"Well, they do look amazing on you." Ichigo said, drawing him towards the bed, his hand still on his cock. That was sexy as hell and Grimmjow made sure to return the attention as they fell onto the bed. Ichigo's body was completely untouched by any ink or piercings, and he loved it. Sliding a hand over that unmarked skin, he ran his fingers over Ichigo's cock. His lover was already half-hard, and he set about fixing that, giving him firm but gentle strokes. Ichigo moaned softly, laying back on the bed, and Grimmjow smiled. He could bottom, but he was too dominant to enjoy it often. This was how he preferred things.

He took his time, exploring Ichigo's throat and making the redhead gasp as he gently nibbled the soft skin. Then he ducked his head, slowly exploring a nipple with his tongue. Ichigo's hoarse gasp made him smile, and he continued teasing that pert nub of flesh. Soon the young man under him was panting and Grimmjow winced as Ichigo gripped his hair, gently tugging on the soft blue strands.

"Grimmjow, stop teasing me." He said, his voice drenched with desire. Grimmjow chuckled and gave his lover a deep, passionate kiss. The fire between them was growing, and he could feel Ichigo's hardness rubbing against his inner thigh. His own cock was registering his pleasure, poking Ichigo in a similar place.

"Where's the lube?" He whispered and Ichigo gestured towards the bed stand. "Right." He quickly got it out and popped open the top, spreading the contents on his fingers. Grinning, he decided to get Ichigo a bit worked up before going any further. He gently gripped Ichigo's cock, dampening the straining flesh. Then he slid his hand over his own cock, before stroking them together.

"Nngh, Grimm!" Grimmjow grinned at the cute, needy sounds Ichigo was making, then gasped as the orange haired man arched, rubbing against him like a cat. "That feels… so good…" He moaned out as Grimmjow stroked them both firmly, deeply enjoying the feeling of Ichigo's hard length against his own.

"Sure does… unh…" Briefly, Grimmjow considered just finishing like this. But he wanted to go further, he wanted to feel Ichigo's insides. Fumbling around, he found the condom and broke the wrapper, unrolling it onto his cock. Ichigo whined at the loss of sensation then stopped as he saw what Grimmjow was up to. The blue haired man reached behind him, slick fingers finding his entrance. "Ah…" That sound was not entirely pleasure, and Grimmjow looked into Ichigo's face as he pushed a finger past that tight ring of muscle. The young man was biting his bottom lip, his face adorably flushed. The sight sent a frisson of desire down to Grimmjow's cock, but he kept his cool and carefully added a second finger, stretching his partner out. "Ngh!" Ichigo suddenly jerked and Grimmjow smiled, devoting some special attention to that particular spot. Not too much, though. He wanted to make this last.

When Ichigo was panting and turning into a puddle of desire, Grimmjow pulled his fingers away and slathered more lube on his cock. Then he carefully positioned himself and eased his way inside, gasping softly at the incredible tightness surrounding him. It felt like heaven in there, and he had to struggle not to thrust in with all his strength.

But Ichigo was whimpering now, shivering a bit in pain from the penetration. Grimmjow stroked his hair and tried to soothe him, whispering sweet nothings in his ears. He stayed still until the tremors eased, but his body had demands and he had to move. Ichigo gasped harshly as he pulled out and thrust back in, taking the other man with a slow, steady rhythm. Then the orange haired man moaned, his muscles tightening as Grimmjow found his prostate again.

"You like that… huh…" Grimmjow whispered into his ear, speeding up his thrusts as he nuzzled his partner's throat. Ichigo gasped, one hand tangling in soft blue hair as the other gripped Grimmjow's back, raising marks on that pale, tattooed skin.

"I love it! Grimmjow!" The hot desire in Ichigo's voice made blue eyes widen in appreciation, and Grimmjow slid a hand between them, finding the other man's cock and stroking it in time with his thrusts. "Nnngh!" Beads of sweat were running down pale skin and Grimmjow licked them away, savoring the taste. "Hnnh!" Muscles clamped down on him like a vice and Grimmjow jerked, almost shooting his load right then. But he held on as Ichigo quivered under his assault, thumbing the tip of his erection and spreading a drop of pre-cum over the hard length. "Oh god!" Ichigo threw back his head and Grimmjow took the opportunity, nipping and sucking that milky throat and leaving hickies behind. He tried to thrust deeper into that glorious heat, the need to take his partner as hard and as fast as possible consuming him.

It was too much. The heat, the pleasure, the cute sounds from Ichigo were all too much. Grimmjow felt his rhythm become fast and erratic, felt the pleasure reaching a peak, and brought Ichigo with him, hitting his prostate again and again. He squeezed the other man's throbbing erection and was rewarded as Ichigo cried out, his muscles cramping so tightly Grimmjow felt like he was going to be crushed. It was the best thing he'd ever felt and it took him over the edge, those tight muscles milking him for his release. He was hardly aware of Ichigo coming, milky white fluid spilling over his hand and his partner's taunt belly.

Grimmjow almost collapsed onto his new lover, spent, but managed to keep himself up. He was heavy, even for his height and size. Ichigo was panting, his eyes half closed and his expression dazed and exhausted. Grimmjow just looked into his face for a moment, savoring the afterglow before leaning in to give him a gentle, but oh so passionate kiss. Ichigo returned it, their tongues weaving together for a moment before they parted in mutual bliss.

"So good." Grimmjow murmured before pulling away and disposing of the condom. Ichigo sighed softly, utterly content. He curled up on his side and Grimmjow slid in behind him, putting an arm over his waist. Ichigo's warmth was comforting, as was his slow, even breathing and the gentle beat of his heart.

They fell asleep together, comfortable and content.

* * *

Ichigo woke up the next morning with a minor headache and an empty bed.

For a moment, he felt a crushing disappointment. He'd hoped to see Grimmjow in the morning and greet his lover with a kiss. But then rationality grabbed him and shook him by the scruff of the neck. Grimmjow had an early morning class. He'd probably needed to get up at five AM to get home and get his books. Of course he was gone, and it was just as well he hadn't woken up when the man left… Ichigo wrinkled his nose, glancing around. Why did he smell bacon?

Puzzled, he pulled himself out of bed, wincing at the slight soreness. It had been a long time since he'd had sex, but he was no virgin. Finding a pair of pants, he shuffled into them and went to investigate. Were his neighbors cooking something? But the smell seemed rather strong for that.

Despite the scent of cooking food, Ichigo was shocked to find Grimmjow in the kitchen, preparing breakfast. He was looking freshly showered, his powder blue hair sticking to his head a bit. A big skillet of food was on the cook, and Ichigo licked his lips as he looked at it. He usually made do in the morning with a bit of cereal and milk, but he kept bacon and eggs in his fridge for evening meals and Grimmjow was clearly a fan of big breakfasts. The toaster dinged and Grimmjow grabbed the toast, buttering them and sliding them onto a plate.

"Grimmjow?" Ichigo questioned, glancing at his wall clock. It was almost seven. "Aren't you going to miss your class?" There was really no way he could make it. Grimmjow looked up from his food prep with a grin.

"I decided to skip it last night. No way was I getting up at five AM, that shit is for the birds." He said firmly and Ichigo laughed. "I hope you don't mind me making breakfast, but I thought I'd get it all ready for you when you woke up." He said and that warmed Ichigo as much as waking up without the blue haired man had hurt him.

"Thank you, that's very thoughtful." He said with a smile, slipping into the kitchen to give Grimmjow his morning kiss. He could taste bacon grease on his lips. "I can tell you've already had a bit." He said teasingly as the blue haired man nuzzled his neck playfully.

"Just a bit. Bacon screams to me, 'Eat me Grimm! Eat me!' And who am I to say no?" He said with a grin and Ichigo laughed, stealing a bit of that bacon and eating it. It was nice and crunchy, but not burnt, just perfect.

"I usually eat cereal in the morning, but this is good." He didn't mind it a bit. This kind of breakfast put cold cereal with milk in the shade. He took a seat at the tiny breakfast nook as Grimmjow put the eggs and bacon on the table, then slid over the toast. Ichigo took a slice, putting an egg onto it and taking a bite. "I'm sorry about your class." He said contritely. He really hadn't thought of that when he'd asked Grimmjow to stay over. His lover just laughed.

"Don't be. Sex or math class?" Grimmjow put a finger to his lips, looking up theatrically. "Man, I just can't pick." Ichigo snorted just as he was taking a sip of water, and almost got it up his nose. Grimmjow desisted from his teasing with a grin. "Don't worry, I'll just get the notes off someone else."

"Good. Uh… Grimmjow…" Ichigo swallowed nervously. He really should have brought this up before hopping into bed with the handsome man. But better late than never, and they really needed to have this discussion. "Are we serious now? I mean… are we exclusive?" He asked, unsure of what he would do if Grimmjow said no. They had used a condom, but still… he didn't want a boyfriend who was sleeping around. Condoms could break, after all. And it just wouldn't be right.

"Damn right we are." Ichigo blinked at that quick reply then blushed as Grimmjow reached across the table to touch his hand. Those beautiful blue eyes were dark and intent. "I'm not the crazy jealous sort, but I'm warnin' ya. When I'm exclusive, I never cheat and I expect my boyfriend to never cheat. You okay with that?"

"Perfectly okay." Ichigo said, feeling like he was floating on air as he squeezed Grimmjow's hand. "I feel the exact same way." He said with a smile. "So don't sleep around, because I can get crazy jealous." He said teasingly, but with a bit of seriousness. He knew his temper, it came out when he fought super villains and wore his mask. Finding out the love of his life was cheating on him, well, his temper might come out again. Grimmjow laughed.

"Wouldn't want it any other way." They tucked into breakfast then and Ichigo deeply enjoyed the morning with Grimmjow. And as they ate, he tried to decide. How long should he wait before asking the other man if they should live together? Maybe he should ask when Grimmjow's lease expired. He'd seen the other man's apartment, and his was in a slightly better location, closer to transit. Ichigo thought it would be better for Grimm to move in with him when his lease was up. Combining expenses would really help with the money situation, too.

Of course, that was all far in the future. For now, he would think about the present.

* * *

Grimmjow and Ichigo dated steadily for the next six months.

Ichigo got a chance to meet Grimmjow's friends, although they were mostly acquaintances and drinking buddies. He'd met them all in the engineering program, and they helped each other out with studying and projects, but the blue haired man wasn't deeply attached to them. Still, they were very nice and fun to hang out with.

He also got a chance to meet Grimmjow's family, although he wasn't sure he was glad of that. They were… odd. That was the best description he could come up with. All of Grimmjow's siblings were heavily tattooed, and his sisters looked unhealthy, with very pale skin and dark circles under their eyes. And his mother was the unhealthiest of them all, looking almost like a corpse wearing makeup. The way she was constantly moving, cleaning or cooking, only made the appearance worse. The only one who looked remotely normal was his brother, and he had spent the entire time they were there trying to fix Grimmjow up with some girls he knew. That had been insulting to them both and Ichigo had never been gladder to get away.

On the other side, Grimmjow got a chance to meet both Rukia, Renji and their daughter. He also got to meet Chad and Orihime. Unfortunately, Uryu had left the city to pursue his dreams of a career in medicine, so Grimmjow hadn't been able to meet him. But the others had made up for it and Ichigo smiled to himself as he thought of it. Chad and Orihime both had special powers, although they'd only dabbled in super heroing. Orihime's powers, in particular, were a bit too gentle for fighting crime. Although she did take the healing role quite well when she was in a group. Ichigo wondered what Grimmjow would have thought, if he'd known he was surrounded by people with super powers.

He also got a change to introduce Grimmjow to his family. Grimm's family had a strange religion and celebrated different holidays, so he was expected home for the winter solstice, but his mother and siblings couldn't care less about Christmas. So Ichigo had taken him home for Christmas and they'd had a riotously good time. At least, he thought Grimmjow had enjoyed it, once he got over the initial sweaty-palm reaction to meeting his lover's family. Grimmjow had hit it off well with his dad and sisters, and had enjoyed the food and wine.

Then Ichigo stopped coming to math classes. Grimmjow wasn't concerned at the first one, of course. That happened all the time. But by the second, he was starting to get concerned. And when Ichigo didn't answer any of his texts, he became very concerned. Fortunately, he had Renji's number and quickly gave him a call.

"Hey Renji?" He leaned against the wall at the coffee shop. "It's Grimmjow. Do you know where Ichi's gotten to? He's not answering his phone." It wasn't unusual that there was a delay in his answering, sometimes a very long delay, but not answering at all was odd.

_Oh… I think he's had a family emergency. He'll probably call you soon._ Grimmjow scowled. Renji didn't sound happy, and family emergency was usually Ichigo's code for super hero stuff. But he watched the news religiously now, and the Mask hadn't been up to a damned thing that he'd heard of. Maybe it was something he wanted to keep secret for some reason? Not everything super heroes did made it onto the news, after all.

"Yeah… well, I'm worried about him. Tell him to call me soon, okay?" After hanging up the phone Grimmjow thought for a moment and grimaced. He wasn't sure what to do. Ichigo was probably working on something as the Mask, and if he tracked the guy as El Pantera he'd have no real excuse for it. He could leave his helmet at home, but Grimmjow didn't want people to know about his super powers.

He'd have to think it over a bit more. Because one thing was for certain, he was not going to let his lover get killed. He might be the Mask and he might be powerful, but anyone could die.

And that was something Grimmjow would not allow.


	3. Into the Rabbit Hole

"What the hell do you want, Nnoitra?" Grimmjow asked his phone, tone on the brink of outright hostility.

He was worried, really fucking worried. It had been two more days and Ichigo hadn't called him. Renji just gave him vague answers about his family, and that pissed him off. How dumb did the spikey haired bastard think he was? Pretty dumb, apparently. Or maybe Renji was the dumb one and couldn't think up a better excuse. Either way he was scared and pissed and the last thing he needed was this asshole on his phone.

_Pantera! Is that any way to talk to your old friend?_ Nnoitra sounded hurt, but that was complete bullshit. Grimmjow could practically see his shit eating grin.

"We were never friends. What is it? I'm retired." Nnoitra was part of his old life. A really sleazy lawyer, he specialized in divorce cases and was known as a cut throat bastard. He also had a reputation as a go to guy, someone who could set you up with whatever you needed, legal or not. Whenever a fellow lawyer needed a witness found or a PI was looking to subcontract a missing person case, Nnoitra was there with a helping hand. And that hand went in turn to El Pantera, who could find anyone if he had a sample of their aura. It hadn't made him a ton of money, but it had been easy work and he'd been glad to do it. Several of those missing persons had been runaways and one had actually been a kidnap victim. It had been one of the few times someone had been glad to see El Pantera.

_I have a job you might be interested in._ Grimmjow was about to hang up the phone when Nnoitra purred out his next words. _It involves your old friend the Mask._ His hand clenched tight around his phone then and he had to carefully control himself to stop himself from shouting at the bastard. If Nnoitra knew he was that concerned, he'd want to know why, and that was a place Grimmjow was not going with him.

"Oh?" He kept his tone casual, although he knew Nnoitra would see through that. He knew all about El Pantera's playful rivalry with the Mask. "What about him? He got himself into trouble?" He asked and Nnoitra laughed.

_Actually, he's gone missing. His super hero friends have been trying to find him, but they're not investigators. So they contacted a PI and the PI called me. Would you be interested in a job?_ Nnoitra said and Grimmjow didn't have to think twice. However, there were practical considerations.

"Fuck yes, I'm interested. But I've got a condition. You need to set up a meet for me with these super heroes." He said firmly. "If someone or something managed to kidnap the Mask, it must be more powerful than him. Therefore, more powerful than me. I'm gonna need backup and I'm damned if I'll hire it myself." That would be expensive and he just didn't have the money. Renji could fucking well help out. There was a thoughtful pause on the other end.

_That could be difficult, but you make a very good point about the power involved. It wouldn't do a bit of good if you vanished as well. I'll get in touch with the PI and see if we can work something out. You know, you haven't asked how much this is paying._ Grimmjow grimaced. He should have asked that. He would, with any normal case. _The offer is two thousand. The PI and I are both getting five hundred as a finder's fee._

"Fair enough." A bit steep for making a few phone calls, but Grimmjow trusted Nnoitra with some of his information. He'd go to jail before giving up any of his contacts. The fee itself kind of sucked for the danger involved, but if Ichigo's friends were paying they probably didn't have much money. "I'm always ready for a challenge. Call me when you arrange the meeting. Oh, and if any of them have access to his apartment or anything I want to see it." That was the simplest way to get a great aura reading, so Nnoitra wouldn't be the least bit surprised. And Grimmjow wanted into Ichigo's apartment for another reason. If he was lucky, he might get an aura reading from whoever had taken him. They had to be strong and he wanted to know how strong.

_I'll take care of it. Expect a call soon._ Grimmjow hung up and went to get a coffee. He was sure it wouldn't be long. Sure enough, Nnoitra called back in less than a half-hour. _They've agreed to meet you. Can you do it tonight?_

"Depends. Where do they want to meet?" Grimmjow said, trying not to reveal that he'd meet on a bed of red hot coals if they wanted it. Nnoitra gave him the address for Ichigo's apartment building and Grimmjow swallowed. "I assume that's where the Mask had been living? They're not wasting much time." He said, playing ignorant to the hilt. Nnoitra laughed.

_Apparently, they're quite worried. They tried to find him themselves for several days._ That made Grimmjow grit his teeth. If only they'd known… well, it was water under the bridge. And he wouldn't have wanted them to know he was El Pantera anyway. _So can you make it? Oh, they'll meet you on the roof._

"Give me a couple hours and yeah, I'll be there." He said shortly. "Later, Nnoitra."

_Later Pantera._ Grimmjow hung up and frowned for a moment before dialing the local taxi company. If he was going to make this meeting in good time, he wanted to get home faster than public transit could take him. The money didn't mean a damn thing, not with Ichigo's life at stake.

He got home, changed into the monkey suit and went out through the window after checking to make sure no one was watching. Once on the roof, he began to jump from roof to roof, then did a quick dance over rush hour traffic. No doubt the owners of the cars were pissed as hell about the dents in the roofs, but he couldn't give less of a fuck. And living in this city, most people just resigned themselves to slightly dented cars.

He made it to the meeting place with time to spare, and began surfing his e-mail again with his helmet. He'd actually missed the helmet a bit. The screen was a helluva lot bigger than a little cell phone. But he didn't have much mail, so he started up a game of minesweeper. After his third loss in a row, the super heroes finally showed up.

Grimmjow wasn't remotely surprised to see the Red Tornado. The guy liked to wear a half-mask, and his bright red hair stuck out behind him like a pineapple. His wife – at least, he assumed she was Rukia – wore a Mexican style wrestling mask. That was nothing surprising, most heroes and villains wore those. They struck the perfect balance between concealing the identity and looking stylish. Renji's mask was less popular due to the lack of coverage, and things like El Pantera's helmet were damned unusual, too bulky and heavy for most people. Renji's outfit and mask were red and gold, while Rukia favored black and gold.

"Hi there Red, long time no see." Grimmjow said easily, wondering if they'd recognize his voice. There was a real possibility they might. "And who is this?" He gave his attention to Rukia, wondering what her super hero name was.

"Spirita." She said and Grimmjow nodded. That was Rukia's voice behind that mask. "We weren't intending to hire you when we contacted a PI, but he said you have a tracking ability."

"Yeah. Give me a bit of the Mask's aura and I'll find him for ya." Grimmjow said, smiling grimly behind his helmet. "Then I'll kick his ass for scaring everyone, heh."

"Fuck no. He's done fighting with you." Renji said, hostility so heavy in his tone you could have cut it with a knife. Grimmjow sighed, standing up. He actually planned to kick Ichigo's ass in bed, but he could hardly say that to them, not when he was still keeping his identity a secret.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's worry about that when we find the little bastard, eh?" He said in a bored tone, gesturing to the door leading inside. "Why don't you take me to his apartment?" The two of them exchanged a glance and Grimmjow could see they were not thrilled about letting Ichigo's nemesis into his rooms. But they finally led the way, taking him down the stairs. Grimmjow was careful not to let on that he could have led them there himself.

Inside Ichigo's apartment, Grimmjow immediately coughed. Something stank. He followed the smell to the kitchen and grimaced at the charred condition of a pot on the stove. It was absolutely disgusting, not surprising though, the metal had been heated literally for days. He quickly turned off the stove, giving the pot one last glance.

"That shit is for the trash." He muttered. There was no way it was ever going to be clean again. And that was pretty lucky, actually, the thing could have set the apartment on fire. "Can you two stay at the door? I need to sniff around." He said to the two super heroes. Renji looked ready to refuse but Rukia gripped his arm.

"It's a reasonable request." She said, which meant she didn't like it either but was going to allow it. Grimmjow left them at the door and started scouting.

He didn't need to do a thing to fix Ichigo's aura in his mind. He already knew that, intimately. No, he was looking for any sign of who might have taken him. His cell was still in his room, so Grimmjow picked it up and quickly checked his texts. To his surprise, there were a few from a girl who was clearly interested. From the looks of it, though, Kurosaki hadn't been giving her any encouragement. Amused, he set the phone down. Ichigo also had a land line, it was required for the enterphone. He had an answering machine on it and Grimmjow checked his messages, including the ones that had already been listened to. Most of it was pretty random crap, telemarketers and friends, including himself. But one of the messages was weird.

"A sperm bank?" Grimmjow flipped up his visor so he could rub an eyebrow, easing an itch. "Shit, those things have to advertise? Since when?" He flipped his visor back down, wondering if they were just soliciting everyone at the university. They were offering a bit of cash, and students were notoriously poor at money management. Shrugging, he turned away from the answering machine and took a deep breath before turning all his attention to the aura sensing.

There was just a trace of something noxious in the apartment. Grimmjow sniffed, lip curling at the stench. It was vaguely familiar, but that meant almost nothing. Plenty of super villains had shitty auras, and he had been willing to be muscle for their grand schemes if the pay was good. The scent wasn't very strong in the bedroom, though. Leaving the bedroom, he followed the trail to the bathroom. He hit paydirt there, but it really pissed him off. Someone had done a good job at cleaning things up, but not quite good enough.

"Hey, you guys. Come here." He called, confident the two super heroes would hear him. They joined him in the bathroom and he pointed out what was obvious to him. "Did you notice the blood?"

"Blood? Where?" Renji stiffened as Rukia put a hand to her mouth. Grimmjow pointed out the tiny flecks stuck in the grout, and also a very tiny splotch on the tap.

"Someone ambushed him in here." He said, sniffing the air. The scent was strong here. But there was one question that needed to be answered. "I need your permission to do a ritual. I need to see…" He hesitated a moment, his own pain threatening to come through. But it had to be said. "I need to see if someone died in here." He said softly. Both the super heroes looked sick for a moment.

"Can we watch?" Rukia asked and Grimmjow nodded. "Go ahead." Gripping one of his gloves, Grimmjow peeled away the black fabric. Then he bit the tip of his pointer finger, ripping the skin until the blood flowed. The mirror was a perfect place, and he drew a simple rune there in his own blood. Then he focused a bit of power through the tattoo on his chest. It resonated easily with the rune, which flared for a moment with black and blue light before crumpling to dust. He quickly turned, but to his relief he saw nothing.

"Okay. If someone had died, you'd have seen a big patch of black." He said, not bothering to hide his relief. There was a soft sigh behind him, and he was sure they were every bit as relieved as he was. "So we're on a rescue mission, not revenge. I think I've learned everything I can here." The foreign aura was strong here but he still didn't recognize it. "Let's get going, hey?"

"Lead the way." Renji said and Grimmjow nodded before brushing past him.

The trail led out the window, and Grimmjow swore quietly before calling on his hidden powers. He could use them, he just chose not to because of the dangers. The tats on his back flared for a moment, and then he was flying. There was a curse behind him and he glanced back, stopping to grin as he saw Red carrying Spirita. She was glaring at him behind that mask, he could tell.

"Someone can't fly, eh? Don't worry, I can't either usually. But these assholes took him through the air." He said. That was a first for his missing person's cases; he'd never actually needed his hidden powers before. Renji just glowered at him and he shrugged before flying on.

It was hard to tell at first, but after a while Grimmjow became sure they were heading for the bad part of town. That made sense, it was a hell of a lot easier to hide a secret lab or something in the slums. He followed the trail unerringly, despite it being days old. That was his unique power, something his family had never been able to explain or replicate.

He finally touched down on the roof of a building, frowning as he glanced around. He'd felt his skin tingle as he landed, and it had almost reminded him of a ward. But that was ridiculous. Only someone with the same kind of powers he had could possibly –

Renji had just landed, still holding Rukia, when power rose around them. The two super heroes and one super villain were frozen, caught easily in a web of darkness. Grimmjow grinned behind his helmet, just standing still. Someone was about to get a brutal surprise, and it wasn't him.

"Well, well. What have we here?" Three girls slid out of the shadows, and Grimmjow wasn't surprised. Three was a natural number for their kind. The girl facing him had light purple hair and golden eyes, set in a face that was incredibly pale and slightly doughy. It wasn't a good look, and if anything her friends were worse. One of them had a bad case of cold sores and the second was so boney, she looked like a mobile skeleton. In fact, she reminded Grimmjow of his mom. They were both quite pale with dark circles under their eyes. "A bunch of super heroes? Tsk."

"Can we kill them Mapake? Can we?" The skeletal girl said eagerly, her dark green eyes blazing with eagerness. The middle girl shook her head and pulled out a wand. It was a piece of polished black wood with a tiny green agate in the tip.

"No. Memory modification. Try to keep up Hari." She said, stepping close to Grimmjow. His grin widened to shark like proportions as she tapped his helmet with the wand. "Higani – HRK!" His kick took her right in the belly and knocked her across the roof, spittle and blood flying from her mouth.

"Just because I didn't move doesn't mean I couldn't, bitches!" Grimmjow snarled as the other two stood in shocked surprise for a moment. Then his sword rasped out of his sheath and the two of them came out of their shock and began trying to fight.

Emphasis on trying. They weren't bad, but they clearly had never fought a serious opponent in earnest before. Where Grimmjow, on the other hand, had honed his fighting style on the Mask. Power flared and danced, but Grimmjow shed it easily, using his sword to end things. The skeletal girl's eyes went wide just before he slashed her throat, then went after her sister. She screamed and tried to run but he tackled her, punching her in the back of the head and slamming her face onto the ground. He wasn't sure if she was alive or dead, and he honestly didn't care. The only one who was certainly alive was the girl he'd kicked, who was retching up her last several days of meals. He walked over to her, his bloodstained sword ready if she tried anything.

"H-How… how… what are you?" She whispered, her golden eyes wide and her pupils tiny pinpricks. "Only one of us – hck!" He gripped her neck, lifting her up easily and choking her.

"Yeah, one of you." He said softly and saw the panic in her eyes. She wasn't expecting mercy from one of her own kind. But she hadn't been planning to kill them. So instead of slitting her throat, he bashed her in the temple with the hilt of his sword. Her eyes rolled up and he dropped her to the ground. She'd have one hell of a headache when she woke up, but she'd probably live. Then he glanced at Renji and Rukia and grimaced. They were both still frozen. "Great." That meant the spell had been pre-set, probably by someone stronger than these three. The only thing to do was to find the runes anchoring it and deface them.

It took him a while, but he finally located one of the runes on the side of a chimney. He slashed his sword through it and felt the power snap, releasing the two super heroes. Renji staggered and almost dropped Rukia, who yelped and found her feet.

"I couldn't move! How did you do that?" He immediately demanded and Grimmjow hesitated. But it was going to come out anyway, so he shrugged and decided to tell them.

"That trap was set up to catch anyone who doesn't have a particular power signature. I have that power signature, so it registered me as a friendly and let me move." He explained and both super heroes gave him deeply suspicious looks. "They're… they've got witchblood, alright? And so do I. I'm what we call a warlock." And now that he knew witches were involved, he knew a lot. "I think I know what's going on." He mused, cleaning off his sword and putting it away. "I think I know why they kidnapped the Mask, and even what they want him for. He's a warlock too."

"Wait, what? What in hell are you talking about?" Renji demanded as Rukia crossed her arms. Grimmjow sighed. He didn't really want to explain, but it looked like he needed to.

"Okay, it's like this. These people are real witches, not wiccans, more like a dark cult based on power and bloodlines." He said, glancing around. Someone might have felt what happened to these girls, he needed to make this fast. "That power is really fuckin' recessive, and it travels best in the male bloodline. But witches hardly ever have boys, so warlocks are rare. The witch clans trade them around, trying to make sure they don't get too inbred." Grimmjow grimaced to himself as he thought about it. He was incredibly gay, to the point of not being able to get it up for a woman, but with modern technology that hadn't stopped the clan. They'd let him go only on the condition he give sperm samples. "So in comes the Mask. A witch must have spotted him fighting and realized what he was." In retrospect, Grimmjow thought he was a moron for not figuring it out sooner. But warlocks were incredibly rare, and Ichigo had no tattoos. So neither of his parents could be part of the clans, which meant his witchblood was further back. That was even rarer. "I bet you anything a lot of hot chicks have been trying to get laid with him the past couple weeks." Renji started and Grimmjow grinned. "The clan would send out the cutest girls to try an' woo him. Then, when that failed, they tried to bribe him to go to donate to a sperm bank." Now he knew why that message had been on Ichigo's phone. It had been targeted to him specifically. "When that failed, they resorted to this. He's a warlock that isn't related to the clans for generations, they want him really fuckin' bad."

"But you're one of them. Are you still helping us?" Renji asked, his tone borderline hostile. Grimmjow sneered behind his mask.

"Each clan works on their own, and I don't know these bitches. They mean nothing to me, and my own clan let me go after I told them I'm gay as fuck." Grimmjow said bluntly, seeing Renji blush and Rukia frown. "So yeah, I'm still with you. Come on, we need to get moving before someone checks up on these three." They were taking too much time. And now that he knew witches were involved, he was pissed. There were a lot of ways for them to get Ichigo into line, and some were better than others. It would depend on how much of a taste for torture the matron of this clan had.

They found the door that led into the building, which appeared to be abandoned. Rat droppings were everywhere and the air was thick with flies. Doors were broken and standing on their hinges, letting them see inside the former apartments. Grimmjow glanced into one and wished he hadn't. There was a dead rat there, crawling with maggots.

"Oh my god. How can they live here?" Renji asked, appalled, and Grimmjow laughed.

"They don't. This is a cover to keep people away." He said, finding the stairs. "We're looking for the basement." He led them down several flights of stairs, stepping carefully on the creaking wood. "Is this place up to code? Stay next to your girl, in case these steps give way." He said and heard an annoyed sigh behind him from Rukia. She didn't like being carried, was his guess.

There was no opposition, no sign anyone knew they were there as they penetrated the basement. The basement was full of spiders, all of them venomous but Grimmjow summoned his power and they scattered, hiding in the shadows. He had to search the basement for a while to find what he was looking for, but he finally did.

"And here it is." He pointed to a blank wall of stone and grinned at Rukia and Renji looked at him like he was insane. "See those two notches, one on either side?" There was a flowing, waving line grooved into the stone, one on either side of a large space. "Those need to be filled to open the door. You're lucky you called me, I can fill 'em. Spirita, do me a favor here and unzip my top." Mystified by the request, the female super hero walked up behind him and pulled down the zipper of his jumpsuit. "Thanks. Now…" Grimmjow pulled off his gloves, tossing them to Renji, then he pulled his arms out of his jumpsuit. Pulling it down, he revealed his tattoos, and wondered if Ichigo had mentioned them to his friends. But there was no help for it if he had. Stretching his arms out in front of him, Grimmjow locked his fingers together and began to chant.

The chant was soft, sibilant, and as he spoke the tribal patterns on his arms began to stir. He heard a gasp behind him but ignored it, concentrating on bringing his tattoos to life. The snakes slid off his arms, taking a physical form, dark grey and dappled with blue. Then the snakes crawled up the walls, fitting their bodies into the groves, their heads resting at the top. Eyes flared blue, and the wall changed.

A great double door appeared, black painted wood with silver doorknockers in the shape of spiders. Grimmjow gripped them both, pulling the doors open with a great tug. Behind were dozens of stairs, leading down into darkness.

"Into the rabbit hole. After you, lovely lady." He said mockingly as he pulled his jumpsuit back on. Rukia gave him a look, but stepped inside. Renji passed him back his gloves and he put them back on before following. The door closed behind them with a sharp, hollow sound, then vanished.


	4. Darkness and Insanity

Grimmjow let his power flow as they walked down the stairs into the witches' lair.

Set on the walls were ornate snakes, carved out of stone with open mouths, as if they were ready to strike. If Renji and Rukia had been alone here, they would have been forced to walk through pitch darkness. But as his power touched those snakes, balls of blue light filled their mouths and gave them ample light to see by.

And what there was to see was nothing but stairs, leading deep underground. Witches' lairs were like bunkers, and for good reason. They were the real thing, and the outraged townsfolk with pitchforks and torches had always been a real possibility. Even in the modern world, covens had been wiped out. Some countries had a very direct approach to black magic.

And it was blacker than hell. Grimmjow scowled to himself as he felt the miasma in this place. Every witch coven felt a bit different, depending on their approach to the darkness. His own coven had always tried to mitigate the effects as much as they could. That meant plenty of purification rituals, which were not a whole lot of fun but definitely slowed down the deterioration that came from too much dark magic. But some covens embraced the darkness and accepted the side effects as the price of power. This was clearly one of those and he could smell the stench already.

When they reached the end of the stairs, there was a large, cavernous room. A grand entry hall, there were ornate, spiralling iron staircases set against the walls. They led to different doors on different levels and Grimmjow grimaced as he tried to get an idea where to go.

"Shit." He whispered to himself. They were all going to stand out like sore thumbs and he had no idea where they were holding the Mask. This place was a hell of a lot different from his family's coven. "Hmm." He really didn't want to start using real magic. His temper reacted really, really badly with it, which was part of the reason he'd stopped using it completely. But it looked like there wasn't much choice. "Okay." He turned to Rukia and Renji. "I'm going to have to disguise us. We can take the appearance of those three girls I clocked out. I'm gonna warn you, though. This shit doesn't feel good." He said warningly and hesitated. But they might need to know. "And the more I use this power, the closer I fall to the darkness."

"What does that mean?" Rukia sounded sharp and unnerved. It was likely the darkness getting to her.

"It means I can eventually go completely insane." Grimmjow said plainly. "And the Mask is probably walking that path already. I'll have to talk to him when this is over." That was nothing but the truth. He was going to have to have one hell of a heart to heart with Ichigo. "But I haven't used my powers in a while so I ought to be fine. Here goes." He turned away from them, removing his gloves. Then he opened the visor of his helmet and pressed his hands to his mouth, breathing into them. Witchery was a very physical art. "By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes…" He murmured, focusing his power. The chants didn't really matter, what mattered was the focus and intentions.

He formed his power into soap bubbles of darkness and laid them over Rukia, Renji and himself. It felt unpleasantly greasy and he heard Renji curse as Rukia tried to scratch herself. The bubbles warped and twisted until there was a faint pop.

Grimmjow glanced them all over, making sure his magic had taken. He had taken the appearance of the girl with the golden eyes and purple hair. Renji was the skeletal girl, while Rukia was the one with cold sores. He pointed a finger at her.

"Try not to talk if you can help it." He said as he flipped back down his visor. His voice was very female. "I didn't hear her voice, so you're just going to sound like yourself." That was why he'd put that particular disguise on Rukia. If she had to talk, they might think she just had a head cold or something. Where if he or Renji used their own voices, it would turn heads. "Now, we're gonna have to start searching. Remember, be confident." That was the key to handling things like this. Look nervous and someone would stop you, be confident and they would assume you belonged.

Grimmjow picked a staircase at random and they walked up the twisting, black metal. Opening the door, he grimaced as he realized this place was an absolutely warren of passages. How big was this clan?

"Fuck me." He muttered and tried to feel out the powers around him. With so many powers around him, he didn't need to be very subtle about it. Anyone feeling it would assume he was just some young witch learning to sense the powers around her. There were plenty of powers around him, but what caught his attention was a strange void deep in the complex. If he were a bit less trained and powerful, he wouldn't have noticed, but to someone of his skill that void feeling indicated powerful wards. "Ah." That was where they wanted to go.

It took a while to get there, though. Amusingly, they got to pass through a lounge where dozens of witches were sitting at their leisure, smoking herbal mixtures, chatting and drinking dark wine. A few of them were working on laptops, although Grimmjow doubted they could get the internet down here. There were disadvantages to having a secret, underground base.

A few of the girls said hello, and Grimmjow said polite things. There was a bit of a dialect to being a witch, and he knew all the words to use. Not that it made much difference with common greetings and no one stopped them for a long chat. Grimmjow knew he was getting warmer when they hit the areas being used for training. Glancing inside a room, he saw several young witches at desks, all of them gazing intently into crystal orbs. Scrying was a difficult skill to master, but everyone had to do it.

"Excuse me?" A woman in red blocked their path. Her skin was alabaster and her hair was raven black. Some witches could make the paleness look good, although the dark circles under her eyes were still a bit unattractive. "Sonia, what are you doing? You're supposed to be watching the roof."

"We have news for the matron." Grimmjow said, stepping a little closer to the woman. "There was someone sniffing around, it looked like a pair of superheroes." The woman's frown deepened.

"You should have sent a message –" Grimmjow took one long step and placed a hand over her face, focusing all his power. She was caught completely by surprise as blue fire flared and she slammed against the wall before falling to the floor. Grimmjow grimaced, gripping her by the armpits and looking for a spot to put her. She wasn't dead, but she would be unconscious for some time. He managed to stow her in an unused classroom. Hopefully, no one would notice her before they were done.

The door behind where the woman had been standing led to the inner sanctum. It was completely empty, and Grimmjow saw why immediately. The room was wide but short, and in front of them was a great wall of black stone. Not real stone at all, it was a ward meant to keep any young and foolish witches from intruding on their elders. Grimmjow examined it carefully and nodded. It followed the same pattern as most such wards, although the markings were particular to this clan and involved a lot of spiders. His own clan favored snakes, which was clear from his tattoos.

"Okay. This is a ward, and behind this is the matron of the clan and probably the Mask. Probably also two more witches, three is a natural number for witches." He said, considering how to open the ward. "You'll have to get her helpers, I'll take the matron. And if you kill your opponent, try to get the Mask free. Taking on a matron, well, that's dicey." Grimmjow wasn't sure who was going to win this one. If he'd been a normal witch and not a warlock, it would have been the matron, hands down. But warlocks were more powerful than witches, it was just a fact. Also more prone to insanity and death, but you couldn't have everything. "Now, I'm going to open this. Try not to freak out." He cautioned them and grinned to himself as Renji snorted.

"We've seen plenty of shit, Pantera. Don't think you can scare us." He said harshly although Rukia seemed a bit more ambivalent. She was looking at the carvings on the wall, a lot of which were eyeballs. Grimmjow laughed before taking a step back and raising his hands.

Blue light began to glow on his chest, navel and crotch. The primary power points, he was activating them now. Fortunately, this kind of power raising didn't affect his clothing or he would have been showing the world far too much. Grimmjow began to softly sing, focusing his power. This would not be an instantaneous process.

_Half a pound of tuppany rice,  
Half a pound of treacle.  
That's the way the melody goes,  
Pop goes the weasel._

Grimmjow repeated that little rhyme once as he gently lined all the makings in blue fire. That was the more innocuous side of things. Now it was time to get serious, and he sang the next rhyme as he began to summon the darkness.

_Half a pound of heroin,  
Half a pound of treacle.  
That's the way the story goes,  
Out comes the Evil._

There was a gasp behind him but he ignored it as black and blue fire curled over the wall. The eyes carved there flickered, twitching and coming to life. The irises were still black like the wall, but the retinas were as bright blue as his own eyes.

The spiders were twitching too, and Grimmjow ignored it as they slid down from the wall on threads of silk. One dropped on his shoulder and explored him, tasting his power and then his blood, sinking fangs into his shoulder. If he'd been any less strong, that would have been fatal, but he overwhelmed it with a burst of blue fire and it fell away, sundered and twitching.

_Half a pound of heroin,  
Half a pound of treacle.  
That's the way the story goes,  
Out comes the Evil._

He sang the rhyme again and mouths began to form on the wall, full of big, square teeth. Tongues lashed out, drool dripping onto the floor. The tongues tried to reach him, but couldn't. The dreadful aura of the darkness he'd summoned defeated them easily. He rested a hand in the centre of the ward and willed the wall out of existence. Surrendering completely to his power, it vanished with a pop.

Behind the wall was something that spiked his temper and brought him perilously close to losing control. What was happening to Ichigo would be some people's idea of an excellent time. He was chained to a metal frame, his arms held above him and his legs kept firmly in place. He was naked, except for a tattered piece of black cloth around his waist. It was currently hiding nothing at all, since an exquisitely beautiful young witch had pushed it aside. Her mouth was busy on his cock, while another very beautiful but slightly older woman was behind him, holding a whip. Blood decorated that whip and had splattered the ground. A third woman was standing to the side, watching them. She wasn't nearly as gorgeous as the two witches in the middle of the room, just a middle aged woman with a pretty good body and an okay face. But her costume made up for that. She was wearing a skimpy black dress cut to reveal all of her tattoos, and a hooded cape embroidered with a bright red spider. The hood was down at the moment, and he could see her hair was jet back and pinned in place with clips of jet and garnet. She also wore a leather eye patch over her left eye. Grimmjow immediately knew he was looking at the matron of the clan.

The really disturbing thing about the scene, though, was the Mask. They were clearly trying to raise up Ichigo's dark powers to better control him, and it was working. That mask of his face was half-formed, and mad black and gold eyes were glaring at the matron of the clan, who was looking back calmly. Then all three of them looked up as they sensed the end of the ward and the new power in the room.

Rukia and Renji needed no guidance, launching themselves at the two lesser witches. Grimmjow raised his hands and his sleeves exploded as he summoned the snakes from his arms. The tattoos flowed away, taking their forms and attacking the matron. She lifted her arms and her own tattoos moved, and a pair of large spiders engaged his snakes. There was no winner, as both constructs shattered into black shards and the tats returned to their respective owners. The matron looked a touch surprised by the attack, then smiled like a shark.

"Another warlock! How lucky we are." Her voice was high and giggly, which immediately put Grimmjow's teeth on edge. She attacked next, her power flowing through the air in dozens of strands of black and red. They reminded Grimmjow of spiderwebs, and he retaliated with thicker ropes of blue and black. His were vaguely reminiscent of snakes.

A fierce duel of power erupted, as spiderwebs tried to snare snakes and snakes tried to sheer away webs. It was another draw, as they each pulled back, and then Grimmjow brought things to the physical level.

One of his best powers, that he'd used on the Mask many times, was his directional arrows. Arrows of blue on the floor, they launched anything that touched them in the direction they were pointing. And they worked on himself, so he used them to leap forward in a tremendous bounce, then dart around the matron to hit her from the back. She went flying, hitting a wall with bruising force. But then she turned back on him with a snarl.

She attacked him with nothing but her bare hands, and her arms raised sparks as they connected with his sword. Grimmjow hissed as the blade snapped, and threw the worthless hilt away. He knew the technique she was using and hardened his skin of his hands and arms. Just in time to block another strike that would have decapitated him, if it had landed. The matron didn't need him alive, not really. He was clearly part of the clans and probably related to her witches, so she could just take a few semen samples from his corpse.

She gathered her power and tried to attack him, but he summoned his snakes from his feet upwards. They swirled around in a small tornado of power and she swore as she was knocked back. Then Grimmjow took the offensive. He called on a greater power, and a shining portal of darkness admitted a creature that looked like nothing but a mass of darkness and eyeballs, with the occasional mouth thrown in. It squelched towards her and the matron scowled as she called up a similar creature. The two monsters went at it, then dissolved into a puddle of goo as the powers cancelled each other out.

"Who gave a warlock such power?" She raged and Grimmjow laughed.

"My family believes in equality of the sexes, bitch!" That was actually quite rare for witch clans, he knew. Most would have given him nothing more than the baby tats, and only enough training to control his powers. His clan believed in seeing how far a warlock could go, although if they started losing themselves to the darkness the tattoos would have to be crossed out. That involved a hot iron, so there were downsides to everything. She snarled and ripped away her eye patch, and Grimmjow flinched at the red light that erupted around her. Instead of a normal eye or even a glass one, she had a piece of ruby there. It was a mystical token, and very powerful.

"Then deal with this, warlock!" The wall behind her glowed with a baleful red light and Grimmjow swore as he realized it had been carved into patterns. The matron was using them, unleashing a powerful attack. But he still had an bullet left in his gun.

"Activate forbidden program." Grimmjow murmured and his helmet responded, showing a beautiful array of large, intricate symbols. He'd never done this before but apparently one of the young witches of his clan had, with a laptop. The laptop had eventually exploded so he wasn't too hopeful that his helmet would survive, but he needed to come clean with Ichigo anyway. He summoned the runes and his helmet glowed with blue fire, before the patterns appeared out of thin air, behind him and to either side. Great patterns of blue and black fire, glowing in the air and gently turning under the force of his will. Grimmjow began to chant as the matron cursed again.

_Dime todo lo que paso  
No me di cuenta ni quien me pego,  
Todo da vueltas como un carrusel,  
Locura recorre todita mi piel._

Grimmjow didn't know much Spanish, but he did know what the words meant. He sang them in English next as the power swirled and spiked.

_Wake me up before I change again,  
Remind me the story that I won't go insane,  
Tell me why it's always the same,  
Explain me the reason why I'm so much in pain._

That was all it needed, and a thick line of black fire twined with blue before erupting at the matron. Black and red met the strike, but neither of the powers dissipated. This was going to be the finishing blow for one of them and they struggled back and forth, the powers flaring. Grimmjow quietly prayed that his sanity and the helmet would hold out. He could feel the darkness reaching for him, feel the urge to kill and destroy rising within him. It was seductive and oh so hard to resist.

Then something unexpected happened. Renji and Rukia must have won their bouts, because he heard a feral scream behind him and Ichigo flew past him, his black sword at the ready. He shot through both the powers and Grimmjow's eyes widened as he rammed that blade into the matron's belly. Red light abruptly failed and blue and black dealt the finishing blow, tearing her to pieces before Grimmjow could stop it.

That hurt the Mask, too, and Ichigo turned on him with a snarl. The helmet had survived all the flow of power, but it shattered as the Mask put a fist through it. Grimmjow was knocked away, feeling the rising tide of Ichigo's power. It was a power so similar to his own that it made him ache, not just witch but also warlock.

"Sh-shit… no!" He gasped as he felt the darkness rising within him. It always did, when he fought the Mask. And his control was already frayed. Snarling, he ripped away the useless helmet and glared at his old enemy and lover. "Fuck you!" His voice was changing, becoming something dark and echoing. "Stop – ah!" Ichigo was attacking and Grimmjow caught his sword on his arms, rising sparks. "Ichigo! It's me, Grimmjow!" But he could see no spark of recognition in those eyes. The mask was spreading, too, going down his neck and onto his chest.

Then Ichigo launched a bolt of red and black power at him and it was too much. Grimmjow howled like a mad thing as the darkness overwhelmed him. A smaller mask of bone began forming on the side of his face as he countered the strike and leapt forward, snarling like an animal. Sharp claws that hadn't been there a moment ago ripped through Ichigo's skin, raising a line of blood across his chest. Then that sword swept for him and Grimmjow used a directional plate to throw himself away.

The battle quickly became brutal then, and Grimmjow danced over plates and Ichigo struggled to keep up. Grimmjow's mastery of his powers was greater, and even in his madness he had a great deal of animal cunning. But he was exhausted from his conflict with the matron. One of Ichigo's power bolts, thrown from his sword, nailed him in the chest and sent him flying into a wall. Grimmjow hit so hard the stone broke around him and blood exploded from his mouth. Then the Mask was there, a hand around his throat, clamping his windpipe shut. Grimmjow choked and slashed his claws down on Ichigo's arm, but the Mask dropped his sword and used that free hand and a bit of dark power to catch his wrists, pinning them over his head.

Grimmjow's body screamed for air, and he struggled frantically, the madness fading as death reached out for him. Darkness was starting to cloud his vision, eating away at the edges of his sight.

_Shit. I really did enjoy my life._ The thought was almost detached as he stopped struggling and heard the Mask growl, the hand on his throat tightening further. _I hope Ichigo doesn't remember this, when he finally comes back._ He would come back from this fugue, eventually, and he might not remember anything. Or he might remember everything. Grimmjow wondered what would happen then, if he remembered strangling his former enemy and current lover.

His body didn't even seem to care about breathing, now, and Grimmjow knew he was only alive because of the dark energy inside him. Then something unexpected happened. Renji's fist hit Ichigo in the face, and a burst of silver power surrounded him. Together, they shattered the mask, and black and gold eyes abruptly flashed to brown. The hand on his throat released him, and Grimmjow fell to the ground. For a moment it seemed like he would finish dying, but then his body caught up and took a huge breath. Coughing and gagging, he frantically drew in air as his vision started to clear.

"Shit… fuck…" Grimmjow let his head fall, his forehead resting on the dark stone. He'd never come that close to dying before. He'd been hurt before, sometimes quite badly, but it had never been _that _close.

"Grimmjow?" Ichigo's voice sounded innocent and surprised. Grimmjow coughed, pushing himself back up then flinching away as hands suddenly gripped the front of his jumpsuit. But he relaxed as he stared into warm brown eyes. "I just – oh god, I'm sorry!" Arms went around him and Grimmjow winced as several wounds were aggravated. But he didn't push Ichigo away. Instead he gently patted his friend and lover on the back.

"Hey, it's fine. We're both alive, right?" His voice was raspy as hell and Grimmjow made a mental note to get some honeyed tea from the coffee place. He was going to need it. He glanced up as Renji knelt beside them, putting a hand on Ichigo's shoulder.

"It's okay. We can talk about it all later, but we have to get out of here right now." Renji said gently and Ichigo sniffed before nodding and pulling away. Grimmjow was sure talking about it all later would include the fact that he was El Pantera, but Renji was right. They needed to get the fuck out of dodge. Gathering his power, Grimmjow began casting more disguise spells. This time, he gave himself the appearance of the woman in red. She'd been a higher ranked witch than most, and maybe that would be enough to get them out without a fight. Rukia, Renji and Ichigo got the appearance of the threesome they'd taken out earlier.

"Let me do all the talking if you can help it." He said and checked the wards around this place. It was still active, so maybe the witches hadn't felt their matron die. If they had, they would be fighting their way out and that could get ugly. "I think we have a chance to sneak out. C'mon, let's go." He led the way back out, wishing he could just cuddle Ichigo and check out his injuries. But they had to get out.

Nothing was more important right now.


End file.
